


Making Brighter Futures

by skisportrun747



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-30
Updated: 2018-06-30
Packaged: 2019-05-30 19:37:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,435
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15103550
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/skisportrun747/pseuds/skisportrun747
Summary: A rather odd teacher at the summer school Harry goes to named Mrs. McGonagall starts to notice as six year old Harry shows the signs of being abused at home. This particular teacher happens to be a bit more connected to Harry than just a teacher, and she decides to do something.





	Making Brighter Futures

It wasn’t the chores that Harry minded. Those were easy enough. It was the constant fear that was always gnawing at his insides that was really starting to get to him. The first person to notice was a rather odd teacher at the summer school the Dursleys forced Harry to go to. Mrs. McGonagall was not any ordinary teacher. She worked only in the summers, and some swore they would see her just appear on the grounds every morning, out of thin air. Some also claimed to see her talking to a very old man with a very long beard. One kid even declared to have seen her transform into a cat, right then and there. 

It was earlier this summer that Mrs. McGonagall started to notice as the normally pretty bright boy started to fall out of participation in class. She had always seemed to show a protective fierceness towards the boy. She noticed how he would flinch before contact with other student, or even contact with the staff and other adults. She started to get worried, remembering the people she knew the boy lived with. One night, as Mrs. McGonagall pored over a book about that very subject, she decided she must do something.

Harry Potter was a pretty normal boy. He liked the things that most boys his age liked. The only difference was his lightning bolt scar, showing what had happened in his past. That was why he lived with his Aunt and Uncle, and his cousin, Dudley. Harry had always had trouble making friends at school. He was quiet, but most of his teachers said he was fairly good at participating in class. The Dursleys, well, they were not the nicest folks ever. Harry was constantly doing chores for them. Dudley never had to do anything. In fact, he usually would sit there and watch television all day, minus the times where he was eating or chasing after Harry. Even though Harry was only six, he did all the chores he was told to do and would do them well. He had also quickly found out that if he did not do them well, things would not go well. He had a couple additional scars, aside from the one on his forehead, marking those instances.

One afternoon, as Harry washed the windows, and Uncle Vernon supervised, a crack like a gunshot rang out.

“Come on, boy! Put some elbow grease into it!” Uncle Vernon had been saying. Then, “Bloody hell! What the-” a woman had appeared, walking swiftly towards them. When she turned around quickly to look behind her, Uncle Vernon whacked Harry and whispered roughly “Go inside. Now.”

“Actually, I think Mr. Potter is the one I came here for,” the woman said, turning back around swiftly.

“Has he done something at that school or something? I knew he needed to be switched to that St. Brutus’ place,” Vernon grunted.

“Actually, it was not Harry that did anything for this situation. I’m inclined to believe that it was you that we must blame here.”

“And what’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means that a normally bright boy has been turned off. It means, Mr. Dursley, that this boys is not getting the support he needs from his guardians! It means that Mr. Potter is not getting the proper care, and not even that! It means that Mr. Potter is not safe here with you and your wife and that awful son of yours! It means that you neglect him, threaten him, bully him, make him do all your housework, and so much more! It means that I am hear by removing him from the awful care of your household, Mr. Dursley!” She yelled, her voice slowly rising.

“And do you have any proof of any of this? No!” He fired back, “you’re one of them, always getting into all our private business.”

“I know the signs, Mr. Dursley. I have seen them before,” she started, this time more calmly, her voice shaking, “I even saw what happened just now. I am a teacher at the summer school he goes to, and at the school he will go to someday. I have watched this boy carefully, after leaving him with you. He is showing all the signs. Your child is slowly becoming withdrawn in class, and flinches before contact. I bet he barely gets fed whatsoever, at the weight he is. Harry Potter is showing all the signs of child abuse. Therefore, I think he should no longer live here. And since I was one of the people who put him here, I can be the one to withdraw him.”

“Who the bloody hell are you anyway?”

“Minerva McGonagall, deputy headmistress and transfiguration teacher at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.”

“And you plan to just march in here and take the boy?”

“That’s exactly what I plan to do. Unless you want me to alert the authorities, of course.”

“Fine. Take the boy. Plant all your weird beliefs into his head. Don’t ever contact me or my wife again. We’ll see how he turns out.”

So she took him. Minerva McGonagall was not rash, and she knew she was doing the right thing. She knew she could not trust anyone else with the boy, so she was going to have to take him herself. 

“Harry,” she said gently, wincing as he flinched at her soft touch, “I’m not going to hurt you. I’m going to bring you somewhere safe where nobody will hurt you anymore. You just have to hold my hand. This might feel a little weird.” 

Slowly, and very hesitantly, Harry raised his hand up to her hand. And they were gone.

****

Minerva McGonagall was used to kids. She was a teacher, how could she not be? But never would she have expected the son of Lily and James Potter to be so quiet and timid. The first week, Harry barely said a single word. On the first morning, she had woken up at five in the morning to find breakfast made already. 

“You don’t have to make breakfast anymore, Harry,” she said gently, “it looks delicious though. I could have made it for you, if you just woke me up.”

“Sorry, ma’am,” Harry whispered, backing away slowly. Minerva was startled. 

“Harry. You’re not in trouble! And please, call me Minerva. This breakfast you prepared looks lovely! You can feel free to start eating without me, I’ll just be getting ready quickly.”

When she came back, Harry was still standing there awkwardly. Minerva walked over quickly and pulled back a chair for him. “Here, sit so you can enjoy the delicious breakfast you have made.”

Harry scampered to sit down, but still did not eat. “It’s for you,” he whispered, “I’m only eating at dinner.”

Minerva wanted nothing more then to march over and and punch Vernon Dursley in the face at that moment, but she she was determined to only show Harry the soft side of her.

“Harry. You don’t live with them anymore. I am not going to hurt you like they did. It was very, very wrong that your guardians only fed you at dinner, and I wish to change that. Now why don’t we eat this delicious breakfast together, it just looks so good.”

***

Eventually, Harry started to open up a little. He was slowly making his way back to that bright cheerful boy he had been when he entered the summer school at 4, before the Dursleys had made their mark on the boy. Minerva was not used to being the motherly type (though many students would consider her as good as a mother) and cooking and such did not come easily. Dumbledore was furious when he discovered what she had done. Never had Minerva seen him this angry. The protection of Lily had been broken.

One day, clearly against his better judgment, Harry shyly walked up to Minerva and said very softly, “Minerva, do you think I could call you Mum? It’s, it’s just, Aunt Petunia never let me, and I kinda miss having someone to call that.” Clearly fearing he had said too much, Harry shrank back again 

Through those words joy and happiness spread through Minerva’s heart. She had finally started to break the awful shell Harry had been forced into. Minerva was known as being fierce and strict, and never had she dove so deeply into her softer, more gentle nature. A smile crept up on her face.

“Of course you can call me that, Harry. And I hope to live up to that name just for you.”

**Author's Note:**

> Yeah this is short. I will try to add more as fast as I can. Please leave feedback on your way out!


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